You spent forty-five minutes clearing the ground where you’re tent is going to go. You’ve picked up every stick, pinecone and rock. You’ve even flattened out the little bumps and filled in the little holes. But, then, when you go to bed you could just SWEAR that every item you moved from beneath the tent worked its way back and brought a friend?

That’s where a good sleeping pad can really help you get a good night’s rest!

I know that camping is supposed to have some level of discomfort. That’s why it’s called camping and not sleeping-in-my-own-bed. Or even staying-in-a-hotel. But there’s a big difference between roughing it and so rough you pack up and go home cranky.

Not only does a sleeping pad cushion you from the irregularities in the ground, it can also add another layer of insulation. Sleeping pads insulate by trapping a layer of non-circulating air between your body and the cold ground. Your body warms the layer of trapped air and then it forms an insulating barrier.

Because a sleeping bag’s loft gets compressed from your body weight, it’s important to have a pad to insulate you from the cold that seeps up from the ground. The amount of insulation a sleeping pad offers depends upon how much air it holds inside and how free that air is to circulate.

There are basically 5 choices for what you can put under your sleeping bag:

Air Mattresses

Cots

Closed-Cell Pads

Open-Cell Pads

Self-Inflating Pads

Air Mattresses

The air mattress has come a long way! They are best suited to car camping in temperate weather since they don’t offer much by way of insulation so they’re not a good choice for camping in cold weather.

Air mattresses come in a variety of sizes.

Advantages – Adjustable, easy to use, inexpensive, very comfortable, can take bed-sized sheets and blankets.

Disadvantages – They can puncture, you have to bring an inflator, not a good insulator, bulky.

Kim’s Experience – I am ALWAYS cold on an air mattress! And, if you are sharing the mattress with another sleeper, you can roll around when they shift position. To me, air mattresses and water beds have a lot in common.

Cots

Sleeping on a cot keeps you from actually sleeping on the ground. A cot can be a nice compromise between ‘hotel’ and ‘tent’.

Cots can be very comfortable.

Advantages – Away from irregularities in the ground, no crawling bugs, extra space below the cot for storage.

Disadvantages – bulky, difficult to assemble, can be uncomfortable, might not fit in all tents.

Kim’s Experience – I’m a fan. But, that being said, our tent is designed for cots: there’s plenty of floor space around the cot AND head room above it. I had to still put down a sleeping pad because the cot was very hard. But, there was lots of extra storage space beneath it for duffels, shoes, etc.

Closed-Cell Pads

Closed-cell sleeping pads are made from a durable dense foam material.

Kim’s Experience – A closed cell sleeping pad is better than nothing. Mostly I’ve found it just forms a layer OVER any bump in the ground so you still feel it, but not as sharply. I do like the pad because they’re pretty much water-proof. I prefer to keep one cut up in my day-pack and use for an impromptu cushion on a hike than for under the sleeping bag.

Open-Cell Pads

Open-cell sleeping pads are made of a lighter, more fragile foam than a closed-cell pad. The foam is more comparable to a sponge.

Advantages – more comfortable, light weight.

Disadvantages – will absorb water, not a great insulator, bulky.

Kim’s Experience – An open-cell pad can be VERY comfortable but it’s still not my first choice because it absorbs water. That can be everything from sweat to moisture seeping up from the ground to a spilled water bottle. I’d save this for backyard slumber parties.

Disadvantages – heavier than other types of pads, can get punctures, have a tendency to curl on one end (from being rolled up), might need additional blowing to fully inflate, can be difficult to roll-up at the end of the trip.

Kim’s Experience – This is the best of both worlds. The inflatable sleeping pad has an adjustable firmness to make it more comfortable. What I don’t like is that there’s always one end that just refuses to lay flat– the end that was rolled up first after the last use. I also find that self-inflating pads can be difficult to de-inflate and roll for storage.

Final Thoughts

Before you buy any type of mattress, cot, or pad, make sure that it will fit comfortably in your tent. You will still want room to move around and space for shoes and luggage.

All sleeping pads have different sizes so be sure to purchase one that is both long enough and wide enough for you to sleep comfortably. Nothing is worse that waking up in the middle of the night half-on, half-off the sleeping pad!

You also need to think about how much space you have in your car (or backpack) for a sleeping pad. Some options are bulkier than others. If you can try it out in the store before you buy, I ALWAYS recommend that. Don’t be afraid to look silly if you’re testing out a cot in the aisle of the sporting goods store! You wouldn’t buy a mattress at home without testing it in the store — a cot or sleeping pad would be no different.

(Of course, make sure that you’re allowed to open the package first!)

If you’re sharing a tent space, you might want to consider getting pads that can Velcro together. Otherwise the pads will separate during the night and somebody will end up sleeping on the ground!

If you’re ready to buy, or want more information about your choices, here’s a link to sleeping pads.

Readers Comments:

What do you prefer as a sleeping pad?

Have you had an horror stories of waking in the middle of the night with a major problem with the sleeping pad?

2 Responses to “Picking A Sleeping Pad”

I car camp with a group once a year (hope to eventually do more). After trying a twin air mattress, which was great when first inflated, but as the night grew colder and the air inside shrank, the mattress got boggier and boggier and by morning my butt was on the ground.

Two years ago, I finally gave up on it and bought — an inexpensive cushion designed for a chaise longue. It is like three big thick square cushions hinged together. Sure, it takes up a lot of room, but this is car camping and bulk is not a particular issue. It provides a lot of distance and insulation between me and the ground inside my tent, and since rain is not an issue (don’t camp in the rain) the fact that it is not in the least waterproof is not a problem.